Linda's Magic Workshop - Linda Britt Design

Quite the Store Sign Driving on the left side of the road (or from my perspective – driving on the wrong side of the road) and shifting on the ‘wrong’ side of the wheel would have made me a little crazy.    It was a very good plan for Peter to drive and me to navigate through the freeways and roads on our Australian travel.  It also provided me the opportunity to take a few roadside photos to share with you.  Never have I taken a trip where there was NOT road work in progress.  Tanzania, Ecuador, Kansas City, California – it does not matter!  There is always road work.  Australia was no different!  New retainer walls were going up as we drove to The Blue Mountains and the stonework was beautiful – big slabs of stone!   I live next door to a national forest and I am used to tall pines.  Tall tree ferns and tall thin eucalyptus trees were different and beautiful in the Australian national parks. Creativ...

  It was a great idea….renting a mini-van equipped with all the camping gear, pots and pans, refrigerator, microwave, sink and range.  We would get off the plane, take a taxi and pick up the van and be on our way to Kakadu National Park.   And that really is what happened.  This is going to be a long post because a lot of other things happened too! We enjoyed the drive stopping at Mary’s River where we saw our first ‘in the wild’ kangaroo and the termite nest. Very Tall Termite Nest That is also where the T-belt warning light came on!  Trust me – that is not a good sign as I quickly found out in the manual.  The T-belt light is the timing belt and if that goes, the engine goes!  As there were no places to stop and call the rental company we drove on in the hopes that we had time to get to someplace that could help.  The further we drove, the more comfortable we became and Peter said, “Let’s go down this road a little way...

Our friend the Pied Kurrawong Katoomba is the largest and seemingly main town in the Blue Mountains. We checked into the charming 1920’s “Blue Hotel”.  Our room faced a park-like area with big trees where Pied Kurrawongs kept us entertained and woke us in the mornings.  Breakfast in the 1920's dining room Bar/lounge area of Hotel Blue   The Cliff Drive had us stopping several places for birding, walking and exploring.  Along the way we met a couple from North England who were also birding and a typical birding conversation ensued.  “Have you been to….?  Have you seen….?  Where is the best place to ….? “ always about birds and nature.   Such fun to meet fellow travelers! The views in these mountains are spectacular with the vast expanses of forests.  The Blue Mountains   Katoomba (an Aboriginal word meaning “shining falling water” offers a variety of architecture and lots of art deco shops....

It seems that man has always wanted to express himself with drawings.   Early man often used stones to peck on rocks as well as paint to leave his messages.   He recorded ceremonies, hunts, dreams, maps, animals and daily life.   Just to clarify the terms: ‘pictograph’ is anything depicted on a stone surface – carved, pecked or painted. ‘Petroglyph’ is the technical word for anything carved or pecked.   I’ve always been fascinated by pictographs.  And I take photographs of the images whenever I am fortunate to find them. Hopi, Pueblo, Paiute Navajo and Anasazi have left drawings on rocks all over the Southwest.     It is great to live in this area of pictorial wealth!   I just came across William Michael Stokes and William Lee Stokes book “Messages on Stone – Selections of Native Western Rock Art “.   The images are divided into types – Apparel and Adornment, Birds, The Corn Maidens, Design, etc.   Great little book for kids and adults! ...

Let me introduce you to Willie and Mario, our pet Bearded Dragons!   They are about 2 ½ years old and ‘supposedly’ came from the same family.   I say supposedly because they have different colors and patterns and are so different in temperament.   They were about 1 ½ inches long when we adopted them and are now about 20 inches long.   Bearded Dragons are originally from Australia and live in the arid, rocky, semi-desert regions and dry open woodlands of Australia .   We’ve built a similar aquarium environment with sand, rocks and a water dish.   I also made a long picture of the Australian desert and wrapped it around their aquariums so they would have something resembling "home" to look at!   Peter (my significant other who introduced me to lizards) is designing and building new homes for them.   I’ll post a picture when they are finished!       Mario in his desert aquarium  Willie and his black beard  Willie...